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Another explosion rippled through the deck—behind them. It shook the Master Chief’s bones in hisarmor. The Lotus mine had detonated.
They didn’t have much time before the Covenant force outside caught up with them.
The Master Chief readied his assault rifle.
“Take those Jackals out, Blue-One. I’ll make a break for theCircumference .”
Linda gripped the edge of the pressure door with her left hand, propped her rifle across it, and curled herright hand around the trigger.
“There are a lot of them,” she said. “This may take a few seconds.”
A flicker of a contact appeared on the Master Chief’s motion tracker—then vanished. He turned and
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brought his assault rifle to bear. Nothing. “Hang on, Blue-One. I’m going to check our six.”
Linda’s acknowledgment light winked on.
The Master Chief eased back down the passage ten meters. No sensor contact. There was just dim redlight and shadows . . . but one of the shadows moved.
It only took an instant for the image to fully resister: a black film peeled away from the darkness. It wasa meter taller than John and wore blue armor similar to that on Covenant warships. Its helmet waselongated and it had rows of sharp teeth; it looked like it was smiling at him.
The Elite warrior leveled a plasma pistol.
At this range, there was no way the creature would miss—the plasma weapon would cut through John’sslowly recharging shields almost immediately. And if John used his assault rifle, it wouldn’t cut thoughthe alien’s energy shield. In a simple exchange of fire, the alien would win.
Unacceptable. He needed to change the odds.
The Master Chief pushed off the wall and launched himself at the creature. He slammed into the Elitebefore it had a chance to fire.
They tumbled backward and crashed into the bulkhead. The Master Chief saw the alien’s shield flickerand fade—
—he hammered on the edge of the alien’s gun.
The creature howled soundlessly in the vacuum and dropped the plasma weapon.
The Elite kicked him in the midsection; his shield took the brunt of the attack, but the blow sent himspinning end over end. He slapped his hand against the ceiling and stalled his spin—then dove under theElite’s follow-up attack.
The Master Chief tried to grab the alien—but their weakened shields slid and crackled over one another.Too slippery.
They bounced down the curved length of the passage. The Master Chief’s boot caught on a railing,twisted—a lance of pain shot up his leg—but he halted their combined momentum.
The Elite pushed away and caught a railing on the opposite side of the passage. Then it turned andsprang back toward the Master Chief.
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John ignored the pain in his leg. He pushed himself at the alien.
They collided—the Master Chief struck with both fists, but the force slid off the Elite’s shields.
The Elite grabbed him and threw him. They both spun into the wall.
The Master Chief was pinned—perfect: he had something to brace against in the zero gravity. He swunghis fist, used every muscle in his body, and connected with the alien’s midsection. Its shield shimmeredand crackled but some of the momentum transferred. The alien doubled over and reeled backward—